The Seattle Times
By Mark Yuasa
October 7, 2012

Here is the weekly update and final figures on the Northern Pikeminnow Sport Reward Fishery Program happening on the Columbia River.

The harvest total from Sept. 24-30 was 8,467 pikeminnow (8,397 the prior week) from 640 anglers (611 the prior week) for a catch average of 13.2 fish per angler (down slightly from the prior week of 13.4) with six tags recovered (seven the prior week).

There was one tagged fish for every 1,411 pikeminnow caught Sept. 24-30.

Final year to date totals of 22,966 anglers with 157,846 fish, and catch average of 6.9 fish per rod with 188 tags recovered.

The best catches this past week have occurred at Kalama with 37.6 fish per rod; Gleason with 29.8; Greenbelt with 22.1; Washougal with 21.5; Ridgefield with 20.3; Boyer Park with 18.1; and Beacon Rock with 18.0.

Northern pikeminnow, a large member of the minnow family, are known to eat millions of young salmon and steelhead, and other fish like bass, walleye and shad in the Columbia and Snake rivers each year.

There is a reward program runs through Sept. 30 each year that offers a bounty on fish measuring 9 inches or longer.

The more northern pikeminnow an angler catches, the more the fish are worth. The first 100 are worth $4 each; the next 300 are worth $5 each, and after 400 fish are caught and turned in, they are worth $8 each. As an added incentive, specially tagged fish are worth $500.

For details, call 800-858-9015 or visit the Pikeminnow Reward Program website.

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